Crayons To Perfume Girls of the Week are the cross boarder cuties, the Charmaines!

The Charmaines, or Gigi & The Charmaines as they appeared on some of their records were one of the more unique girl-groups. They were from Cincinnati, Ohio - a day's drive from Toronto, Ontario in Canada and their adopted 2nd home of many years. Toronto had a thriving soul and r&b scene in the 60's and was hungry for more of the music that was heavily influencing "the Toronto Sound" - the Charmaines even have three very obscure singles on Red Leaf Records (from Toronto) - which we'll feature at a later date (because I don't have my hands on all of them! If anyone can send me files of the records, please let me know!!!!)
The Charmaines made quite a few records, but the girls seemed to measure their success not on the hit songs that eluded them, but on the busy schedule they kept for live performances - they were working constantly!

The Charmaines were also on local TV frequently, but none of the footage is on Youtube, so instead we've featured some fantastic recent re-union footage from Cleethorpe's Soul Weekender! The girls sound hasn't changed a bit, and here they do 'Eternally'.



Crayons to Perfume 9 features not only the Charmaines, but a set of powerhouse soul sisters, solo pop girls and some swingin' 60's ye ye covers that transform those seemingly sweet and innocent French Femmes into torrid temptresses that tantalize! We end our show with a taste of next weeks Lovely Latin Ladies one hour special - a show filled with super music from the girls of South America, Mexico, Spain and Cuba!!

Crayons to Perfume airs each Monday morning with your host, Glynis Ward aka DJ girlgroupgirl - just search on WFMU Rock 'n Soul Ichiban to find a list of all our other shows - they remain here for your listening pleasure 24/7

The Charmaines: Guilty
The Charmaines: I Idolize You
The Charmaines: Poor Unfortunate Me
The Charmaines: I Don’t Want To Loose Him
Sandy Shaw: Girl Don’t Come
Petula Clark: Reach Out
Chris Connor: Downtown
Billie Davis: Ev’ry Day
Cher: I’m Gonna Love You
Patti Drew: Hard To Handle
Thelma Jones: The House That Jack Built
Gloria Jones: Tainted Love
Erma Franklin: Gotta Find Me a Lover (24 Hours a Day)
Shirley: Big Boss Man
Les Scarabees: Puisque tu m'as quittée (Nothing But A Heartache)
Sylvie Vartan: Quand Tu Es La (The Game of Love)
Evy: Une question qui se pose 1965 (Questions I Can’t Answer )
Stone: Garde Ton Sang Froid (I Can’t Control Myself)
Jocylene: Nitty Gritty
Les Fizz Si tu fais ça (You Can’t Do That)
Jenny Rock Mal (Hush)
Cristina & Los Stops Corazon Contendo 1969

Saturday Night Dance Party Live From The Admiral

Need a DJ for your Saturday night dancing party?  Tune in to "Live From The Admiral" with Dr. Filth. 11 PM - 2 AM.  BYOB.

And, don't forget to check this space every Monday for a new episode of "Crayons To Perfume" with your host Girl Group Girl.

Thanks to J.R. Williams for the logo!

Crayons To Perfume Girl of the Week is that mini Mandarin Missy, Rita Chao!

Today I have a secret, and I'm going to spill the beans. It's really not my style to announce my #1 most wanted record, but today is the day. I REALLY want the album pictured in our video below, because it contains Rita Chao's version of 'Venus'.
Rita Chao is one of the wonders of Singapore's 60's pop "scene". Her voice is unique, and often when singing English, it's awkward sounding to Western ears and the notes often sharp - perfect for her beautiful renditions of traditional Mandarin songs!
I discovered China's hidden 60's pop music while living in Toronto. A record store had purchased a good pile of assorted ethnic 45's and I bought them. There were a few good Portuguese EP's (all of them covers) and a handful of Chinese records. A few of the 45's were "a go go" records but I couldn't read the labels - I suspect now that one or two were either the Trailers or the Quests backing male and male/female duos. At the time I was working with a woman who spoke only Mandarin, and she adored the records, so when I moved the records stayed with her, but those records sparked an interest to find out more about Asian music in the 60's.

Here's Rita with her version of 'Venus'.



Click here for our latest Crayons To Perfume, featuring Rita Chao, a handful of Beatles girls, along with some pop and soul! Check us out here at WFMU's Rock 'n Soul Ichiban each Monday morning - and just search on Crayons To Perfume for all of our past shows. In the coming weeks we have some great stuff planned for your listening pleasure - all kinds of surprises!

Rita Chao: Hanky Panky
Rita Chao: Love Is Me, Love Is You
Rita Chao: How To Catch A Girl
Rita Chao: Shake Shake
Rita Chao: It’s Gonna Be Alright
Bonnie JO Mason: Ringo, I Love You
Linda Gayle: Twist & Shout
The Bootles: I’ll Let You Hold My Hand
The Carefrees: We Love You
Claudette & Sylvie: Oui C’est Vrai (Hold Me Tight)
Shangri-Las: Train From Kansas City
Chymes: He’s Not There Anymore
(Raparata &) The Del Rons: Your Big Mistake
Julie Driscoll: Don’t Do It No More
Tootie & The Bouquets: The Conqueror
Erma Franklin: Hold On I’m Comin’
Nanette: He Knows How
Irma Thomas: Teasin’ But Your Pleasin’
The Velvelettes: He Was Really Sayin’ Somethin’
Martha & The Vandellas: Dancin’ In The Street
Gigi & The Charmaines: Rockin’ Pneumonia & The Boogie Woogie Blues